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Nothing I Owe – Behind the Scenes

“Nothing I Owe” is an acoustic music video I shot in October on location in Myrtle Beach. It also has the honor of being the fasted principal photography time in the history of Magic Rabbit Productions. All told, we shot for about 40 minutes. I’ve been keeping this under wraps for a while (it was a Christmas present!) but it’s finally ready to be seen.

James Green – Nothing I Owe

The genesis of the idea came very naturally. We were on vacation in Myrtle Beach, sitting out on the porch of our condo. James Green, guitar in hand, was running through several songs he had written. I was shooting him casually, enjoying the way the neighbor’s porch lights looks in the background and not really committing to anything more than a couple cool shots.

He started to play “Nothing I Owe” and the song’s meaningful connection hit all of us. Within seconds, Elizabeth and I had switched from “casual shooting” to serious “I’m cutting this video” shooting.

We resolved to film a couple more passes the following day, along the beach. We didn’t bring change for the parking meter, so we found ourselves with a mere 25 minutes to get all the coverage we needed.

I strapped on my old Pentax 50mm f/1.4 and we got started. Three song passes and and couple B-Roll shots later and I knew I had all the coverage I needed to make a stellar video.

It’s funny how working within tight time confines makes you so much more efficient. If I had an hour or two, I definitely would have fussed more, working on setups, lighting etc. But there just wasn’t time and that makes the video feel more organic. The simplicity of shots is honest and compliments the song well.

I’m not saying I’m going to make a career out of shooting music videos in less than an hour, but it’s a fun experience regardless. Sometimes you need a unique challenge to push your creativity a bit.